Shark Information How many species of sharks are there?
In South Africa, we have over 100 species of shark - pretty lucky we would say. Around the world there are well over 400 different species, from the massive Whale shark to the diminutive Pygmy shark with a variety of oddities such as the bizarre looking Goblin shark and the recently discovered Megamouth shark. If you live on the coast, then do a little shark information research into what sharks are near you and we bet you will find that you have some pretty cool sharks as marine neighbours.
How do we attract sharks?
Well, most people think that throwing blood in the water works, but this is actually fairly ineffective as it quickly disperses. Low-frequency sounds travel for huge distances and in many cases resembles struggling fish sounds - therefore acting as a magnet to predatory sharks. Dying or struggling fish that are injured also attract sharks by virtue of odour from wounds, vibrations from their struggles and sound from irregular thrashing, hence fishermen often losing their catch to sharks – a key issue in shark conservation. That said, sometimes sharks just are plain uninterested in anything we might do to attract them and pretty much just go about their day’s activity without paying us any heed.
Where do sharks live?
Pretty much all over the world, with the exception of the very cold Antarctic, sharks have successfully occupied the ocean. Sharks live in the warm and cold oceans of the world and inhabit water right from the surface to over 1000m deep, adapting themselves to a life in the dark. Great White sharks occur in temperate waters around the world in waters typically from 12-21⁰ C but can be found in water as cold as 4⁰ C and as warm as 28⁰ C. Shark conservation and research shows that many sharks have an ability to regulate their body temperature above the surrounding water.
Why do sharks attack humans?
Firstly shark attacks are very rare. There are also a variety of reasons why sharks may attack people. Some shark conservation specialists speculate that in the case of Great White shark attacks, it is mistaken identity of us looking like a seal when silhouetted against the surface. In many cases, the shark has been provoked by being hooked, injured or cornered and it is just a natural defence action on the shark’s part. More complex shark information suggests that we may even be unknowingly engaging sharks socially by challenging them with certain body postures as they would show each other and as such we initiate combat/interaction or defensive aggression. Who really knows?
What we do know is that sharks do not hunt people naturally, because if they did, thousands of ungainly bathers would be gobbled daily. Humans must also realise that we are invading their territory and occasionally, no matter how slim the chances are, we do occasionally fall prey to sharks. Put into perspective however, over 100 million sharks are annually killed by humans and less than 25 humans are killed by sharks. A ratio of one human for every four million sharks we kill. Sadly sharks have far more to fear from us supposedly intelligent humans than we need to fear from them.
How do sharks maintain neutral buoyancy?
Unlike fish, which have air bladders, mid and surface water sharks have very large livers filled with very buoyant oil. As a result, sharks can also regulate their position in the water column like fish, but simply use a different method as shark conservation and research shows.
Is free diving offered on the Mako and Blue Shark Trip?
We realise many of the guests may not want to cage dive in the open ocean and indeed for 11 years since we were the first to offer pelagic free diving with Makos and Blues in South Africa all we did was free dive.
Today we cage dive for reasons we will outline below.
- We operate anywhere between 30 to 50km offshore in an area where a helicopter med evacuation is almost impossible. A simple easily treatable bite inshore can be a serious and potentially fatal bite offshore.
- Currents in the area where we work run on average at about 1 to 1.5knots making almost constant swimming necessary especially if this is exacerbated by wind which is the case on most trips. This means guests need to swim constantly to keep up with the boat and seldom adhere to safety rules we have in place and often drift away from the boat. By using a cage our guests are in an environment free of current and can comfortably take pictures without swimming or hanging on to a rope. We can also still work in conditions that are fairly rough as the cage is still an option for diving (albeit bumpy). The
- By using a cage we do not have to be concerned about how many sharks we have around us. Pelagic sharks are not like many other species, they will bite and to have 10 or more sharks around you whilst free diving is a lot to be concerned about.
- Chris or Monique would always accompany guests while in the water but with 6 or more people taking turns two at a time this made for a lot of time in the water, the cage negates this and guests can therefore have longer time with the sharks.
- The cage in no way deters the sharks and we can actually get divers very close to multiple sharks at one time, so rather than fending off sharks, the guests enjoy viewing them in a relaxed manner.
We realise our operation has done an about turn on conventional wisdom with regards to starting this trip offering free-diving and now only cage diving. We have come to understand the conditions and wildlife we work with better. Our success rate and knowledge of the offshore environment has also improved greatly.
Remember also that the pelagic trip is not just about sharks but a huge assortment of wildlife that we try to showcase and hope people enjoy. The birds alone are worth the trip if people are really into nature. We also place an emphasis on showing guests as much of everything as possible.
